US Navy says seized weapons en route from Iran to Yemen

DUBAI: The US Navy said on Tuesday it had seized more than 2,000 assault rifles smuggled on a fishing boat along a maritime route from Iran to Yemen.

The cargo was discovered on Friday off the coast of Oman “on a route historically used to traffic illicit cargo to the Huthis in Yemen,” the Bahrain-based US Fifth Fleet said in a statement, noting the vessel “was crewed by six Yemeni nationals.” “This shipment is part of a continued pattern of destabilising activity from Iran,” Vice Admiral Brad Cooper was quoted as saying.